Echoes of the Broken Sky
The wind shifted, carrying with it the low hum of something unnatural — a vibration that seemed to crawl under the skin. The cracks in the sky had grown since dawn. What began as faint scars of shadow were now spreading like veins across the heavens, pulsing with faint violet light. Every few moments, one of them shimmered, and the sound that followed wasn't thunder but something far older — the sound of reality itself straining to hold together.
Zero and Lira moved quickly through the wreckage of the battlefield, navigating the shattered terrain with precision. Every step echoed with the memory of what had transpired there, and yet neither of them dared to speak. There was a heaviness in the air — the feeling of something vast and unseen pressing down from above.
Lira's eyes darted skyward as another pulse rippled through the air. "They're spreading faster," she said, her voice barely above a whisper. "At this rate, the rifts will reach the capital before nightfall."
Zero stopped, scanning the horizon. "Then we don't have until nightfall."
He raised his hand, focusing the energy within him. The air shimmered as his aura flared to life — not in violent bursts as before, but controlled, measured, like the heartbeat of a god. From his palm, streams of radiant energy extended outward, forming a complex pattern in the air. Lira watched as ancient runes — the same ones etched into the Ascendant relics — flickered into existence around him.
"What are you doing?" she asked.
"Listening," he murmured. "The rifts aren't random. They're being pulled — guided."
The sigils flared, casting sharp white light against the darkened sky. For a moment, the chaos quieted. Through the veil of sound and distortion, Zero felt it — a rhythm. Not natural, not of this world. It was a call, echoing through the void and across dimensions, resonating with something deep inside him.
Then he heard it. A voice.
"You opened the way."
The words struck like a physical blow, vibrating through the air around him. Zero staggered, his aura flickering. Lira rushed to his side. "Zero! What is it?"
He clenched his fists, forcing his focus to return. "It's not the rift," he said, voice low. "It's something beyond it. Watching."
Before Lira could respond, the ground split open beside them. From the glowing fissures, tendrils of darkness erupted — thick, smoke-like limbs tipped with claws of pure void. They lashed out, grasping for the two figures with unrelenting hunger.
Zero reacted instantly. His aura flared, forming a radiant barrier that absorbed the first strike. The impact sent shockwaves rippling outward, scattering debris in all directions. Lira dove behind a fractured wall as Zero countered, thrusting his hand forward. Lightning exploded from his palm, spearing through the tendrils in a blaze of gold and violet.
The shadows screeched, recoiling — but more followed. Dozens, then hundreds, crawling from the cracks like the hands of an unseen giant clawing at the world from below. Their voices merged into an eerie chorus of whispers, each one echoing with words that made no sense and yet felt deeply familiar.
Zero leapt into the air, summoning his Ascendant Blade — a construct of energy forged from his own soul. It shimmered in his grasp, the edge vibrating with impossible sharpness. "Stay behind me," he ordered.
Lira raised her staff, tracing sigils of light in the air. "I wasn't planning on running."
The first wave hit them. Zero met it head-on, cutting through the dark forms with blinding precision. Every strike tore through the air like thunder, each impact followed by a burst of radiant energy that vaporized the creatures on contact. Lira stood her ground, channeling beams of pure light from her staff to pierce the gaps in their ranks.
But for every shadow they destroyed, two more emerged. The rifts were widening, pulsing with a heartbeat that seemed to sync with Zero's own. He could feel it now — the tether connecting him to the other side. Whatever intelligence lay beyond the rift was drawing strength from him, using the remnants of the Ascension as a bridge.
He gritted his teeth, slashing through another wave. "It's using me," he growled.
Lira looked over, eyes wide. "Then sever the connection!"
"I can't," he hissed. "Not yet. If I break the link without sealing it properly, it could tear the veil completely."
Another pulse erupted from the sky. The clouds above them twisted violently, forming a vortex of shadow that spiraled downward. From its center, something vast began to emerge — a shape without definition, constantly shifting, like smoke trying to become flesh. The air grew cold, heavy, as if the world itself was holding its breath.
Lira whispered, "What is that?"
Zero's voice was a low growl. "An Echo."
The creature's arrival shattered what remained of the silence. It roared — a sound that warped the air, bending light itself. Buildings collapsed under the force of it. The thing lunged, its form distorting into a mass of tendrils and wings. Zero met it midair, his blade colliding with its core in a blinding explosion.
The impact sent both of them hurtling backward. Zero crashed into the ruins, shards of stone raining down around him. The Echo reformed almost instantly, its body rippling like liquid shadow.
"Damn it…" Zero muttered, forcing himself to his feet. His body screamed in protest, but he ignored it. He launched forward again, aura flaring with renewed fury. Their second clash sent ripples of energy across the sky, tearing open smaller rifts as stray bursts of power collided.
Lira channeled every ounce of her strength into a warding circle, trying to contain the surge. "Zero! You can't keep this up — it's feeding off you!"
"I know!" he shouted, driving his blade into the Echo's chest. The creature screamed, its form fracturing. "That's why I'm ending this now!"
He poured everything into the strike — light, fire, lightning — a storm of energy that illuminated the battlefield like the sun. The explosion that followed shook the very foundations of the world. When the light faded, the Echo was gone.
Zero fell to one knee, panting, his aura flickering weakly. Lira rushed to his side, supporting him as cracks of energy still pulsed across his arms.
"It's over," she said — but even as the words left her lips, they both felt it: the sky above them trembling, the rifts glowing brighter.
Zero raised his head, eyes narrowing. "No," he said quietly. "That wasn't the invasion. That was the warning."
As they watched, the largest rift — high above the eastern ridge — began to spiral open, its edges twisting with dark flame. From within, an enormous silhouette began to form — colossal, ancient, and alive.
Lira gripped his arm tightly. "Zero… what is that?"
His answer came as a whisper, almost reverent. "The Abyss has noticed us."